DIOCESE OF ROCKVILLE CENTRE OFFICE OF THE BISHOP February 11, 2019 Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you…” (Jeremiah 1:5)At the very heart of our beliefs about who we are and why we exist, is a message of love. God creates us out of love. Out of love, He redeems us by the sacrifice of his Son, Jesus. He calls us to an eternal destiny with Him because He loves each sacred human life, created in His image.That we are created in God’s image is reaffirmed in our nation’s Declaration of Independence, reminding us that we “are endowed by [our] Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” The right to life is the foundation and starting point for every other God-given human right. When that right is attacked or denied, all other rights and liberties begin to crumble.You are probably aware that on January 22, 2019, the 46th anniversary of Roe v. Wade (the Supreme Court decision that declared an absolute constitutional right to abortion), Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York signed into law the “Reproductive Health Act”, which he himself called “the most aggressive” abortion law in the country. It was then “celebrated” by his lighting up One World Trade Center and the Alfred E. Smith Building in Albany.It is our obligation as citizens and as Catholics, to be well informed and to make our voices heard in the public square when evil and injustice threaten the sacred gift of life at any stage.On a human level, this gruesome law should be appalling to people of every faith, or no faith. The Reproductive Health Act allows for abortion on demand with no restrictions throughout all of pregnancy. This means that as a choice, an abortion could be performed on a full-term infant as the mother is going into labor.This law might also open the door to taking away conscience protections from medical personnel, and could be used to force doctors, nurses and other medical staff to perform or to assist in abortions. Governor Cuomo claims that he is protecting women’s rights, when in fact, this law endangers the lives of women by allowing non-physicians to perform abortions, and it removes any objective standard of care due to the patient.The Act has also removed criminal penalties when an unborn child is deliberately targeted for death in a crime. Two and a half weeks after the bill became law, the Queens District Attorney said he could not prosecute a man for the stabbing death of his unborn child in the womb of his girlfriend, because of the passage of the Reproductive Health Act.Unimaginably, the law also repeals protections for infants who are accidentally born alive during the course of a failed abortion. This amounts to infanticide, the killing either by direct means or by neglect of an infant who is alive outside the womb. The law is silent on reducing the pain and suffering of infants, especially those being aborted late term.

means or by neglect of an infant who is alive outside the womb. The law is silent on reducing the pain and suffering of infants, especially those being aborted late term.Brothers and sisters, this law is an abomination that cries out to Heaven for justice. We cannot be silent in the face of such a blatant attack on the most vulnerable among us. I invite you to do several things:1. Stay informed and educated regarding these issues and the battles ahead of us, such as assisted suicide and legalized surrogacy. Two outstanding resources available to you are:- The New York State Catholic Conference on the web at https://www.nyscatholic.org.- The Diocese of Rockville Centre Respect Life Office and web page: (516) 678-5800 Extension 381 or on the web at https://respectlife.drvc.org2. Get involved. Both web pages listed above offer easy links to contacting your elected representatives. Let the Governor and our other elected officials know that this Act violates the dignity of the human person and that you do not support it.Get involved in the efforts already underway at your parish, such as Respect Life Committees. In addition, our Diocesan Respect Life Office can direct you to ways that you can support and promote the sanctity of life locally, on Long Island.3. Pray. Pray the Holy Rosary. Ask the intercession of Our Blessed Mother Mary, Protector of Mothers, Defender of Life and the Family, to strengthen us so that we may be compassionate, courageous witnesses to the truth. Ask also for the intercession of Saint Thomas More, patron of statesmen, politicians, lawyers and judges, who lost his life for refusing to renounce his conscience and give in to the tides of political power and privilege.Pray for our elected officials and for all people and pray that our politicians come to understand their profound obligation to defend the most defenseless among us. Any Catholic who actively supports an attack on the sacredness of life, chooses to place him or herself in grave moral danger and outside of the Communion of the Church. We pray for their souls, for a spirit of repentance, for a return to the truth of the love of God. It is God’s love that formed each one of us in our Mother’s womb.A civilization that not only will not protect, but actually celebrates an attack on its most vulnerable members is morally bankrupt and stands on the verge of collapse. We pray for the courage of the martyrs, that an awakened spirit of evangelization and voices raised together will move hearts and minds, and call us back to our God-given senses, to the God who made us, who loves us, and who offers us our eternal destiny in love.Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us!Sincerely in Christ,Most Reverend John O. BarresBishop of Rockville Centre

From the Pastor Fifth Sunday in Ordinary TimeFebruary 10, 2019 Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany

Last week I wrote to the parishioners to announce the sad news that the preschool program would be ending in June. Because much misinformation and rumors continue, along with, sad to say, rancor, malice and harassment, the letter of last week is printed again so that all may clearly understand why the preschool program is closing.

From the PastorFebruary 3, 2019Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Fourth Sunday After the Epiphany

ST. PAUL THE APOSTLE PRESCHOOL

For many years the St. Paul the Apostle Preschool has provided early childhood education in our beloved parish. I am always happy to meet individuals who tell me that they are alumni. Sadly, St. Paul the Apostle Preschool will graduate its last class in June of this year. I made this sad decision on Epiphany Tuesday, January 8, 2019, and communicated it to Mrs. Gayle Crimarco, the Director of the program, personally in a cordial conversation on Thursday January 10, 2019. I wrote a letter to the parents on January 14, 2019, informing them that the Preschool parish program would close in June 2019. (My letter to the parents is printed below.) I was most anxious to communicate the information to the parents of the children in the program, because I did not want the children to begin registering for the program and I was most anxious that they have ample time to place the children in other early childhood programs.

In an effort to address some concerns and misinformation, as Pastor, I would like to share with you some background to the closing of this parish program of the Preschool. Why have I made the decision to end our parish program?

After consultation with several pastors and my closest parish advisors, as well as school administrators, and diocesan officials, and, only after deep prayer over the Holy Time of Christmas, I based my decision on the following factors:

1. Declining EnrollmentThere are currently 54 children in the Program (all three levels). In June of this year 28 of them will graduate.Assuming all the other students would have remained, we would begin with 26 students in the upcoming Fall. We would have hopefully registered some more children, but obviously were anticipating a significant drop in enrollment for next school year. (In its heyday, the program had as many as 125 Students).At present there are eight (8) St. Paul’s families participating in the program totaling 13 of the 54 children. This is fewer than 25% of the children in the program. More than 75% of the children in our parish program are not from families who are parishioners.There are 24 children in the program who are Catholic. The other thirty (56%) are of various faiths: Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, and several Protestant denominations.

As we know the demographics of our area have changed over the years so we would not anticipate a large influx of Catholics or St. Paul parishioners.

2. Parish SubsidyThe parish subsidy for the program (Net Cost of Program WITH Fixed Expense Allocation) for Fiscal Year 2018 was $41,896. The parish subsidy for FY2017 was $44,570; the parish subsidy for FY2016 was $15,118, and the parish subsidy for FY2015 was $4,134.Each year our parish must remit to the Diocese of Rockville Centre a diocesan assessment. As a parish program the revenue generated by the Preschool (minus classroom expenses) is assessed by the diocese at 7.4%. In real numbers this means that our parish must remit to the diocese for the Preschool program $21,473 (FY 2018). This will then be an expense that will be saved.Separate and apart from the subsidy for the preschool program, our parish must remit an assessment to the Diocese for the support of the Catholic Schools in the Diocese (both High Schools and Elementary Schools) . The amount of the assessment is based upon annual parish collection revenue. For FY2018 this assessment was $75,530. It must be clearly understood that this assessment is completely separate from the Preschool and the status of the Preschool does not affect this assessment. All parishes, with or without a preschool program, are assessed annually.

As can be seen, there has been a decline in enrollment and thus a larger subsidy. In order to delete or even reduce the parish subsidy, the tuition would have to be raised to an amount that would be a sacrifice for many young families This parish subsidy is a significant outlay for our small parish for a program servicing only eight parish families.

3. Retirement of Administrative StaffOn Tuesday November 27, 2018, Mrs. Gayle Crimarco, the Director of the program, and Mrs. Debbie Oliva, the Administrator of the program, informed me that they would both be retiring in June of 2019. They submitted their letters of retirement dated November 26, 2018. They informed the faculty of their June retirement shortly before the Christmas Break. You will notice that in the letter to the parents I wrote of the outstanding service Mrs. Crimarco and Mrs. Oliva have given the parish for many years. Between them there is over 40 years of experience and dedicated service. As I wrote to the parents, they are remarkable women and completely dedicated to the program and the children. I know you join me in wishing them well in their well-deserved retirement and pray that God Our Lord will bless them with many years in health and happiness.In my initial correspondence to the parents dated January 14, 2019, I did not mention the retirement of Mrs. Crimarco and Mrs. Oliva. I did not want this fact to be a distraction. It is only one of the several factors that have led me to my decision. I did not want this factor to receive disproportionate attention. No one is to be blamed for the ending of the program. I inform the parishioners now simply because there have been misunderstandings and spreading of rumors. I hope this clear truth will end any malice or rancor which have no place in a Catholic Parish.

4. Diocesan PolicyThe Education Department of the Diocese has guidelines about Catholic Elementary Schools. Our Preschool is not a Catholic Elementary School. In fact, it is a parish program. Nevertheless, I did use these criteria in helping evaluate the viability of our program (which is not a school).The Diocese has guidelines to evaluate the health and viability of a school using certain criteria: 1) the number of students enrolled. 2) The percentage who are from the parish. 3) The percentage of Catholics in the Catholic school and 5) finally the parish subsidy. Also considered in this evaluation is the participation of the parents in volunteer work and Sunday contributions to the parish. Although not bound to these directives they were helpful in coming to my decision.

In summary, I have shared with you all these many factors which helped me to arrive at my decision. I could no longer expect the parishioners of St. Paul the Apostle, already sacrificing so much, to provide such a large subsidy to a parish program in which so few of our parishioners participate. My primary concern which is also that of Mrs. Crimarco and Mrs. Oliva and of all the program’s staff, has been and always will be the children. That is why it was essential that this information be communicated in a timely way. We all stand ready to assist the children in finding new programs.

It is my fond hope that this letter has answered your questions about why the preschool is ending. The ancient Romans had an expression: Res ipse loquitur. (The thing speaks for itself). I am sure you will agree that in this case that phrase is most applicable. I made one of the saddest decisions of my life, but it was a decision in which I had no other choice. As pastor, I am solemnly charged to be a responsible steward of our parish resources.

May I encourage everyone to pray for our children and to act with great charity and understanding in these remaining months. It is my fond hope that there will be calm and serenity, and the absence of malice, blame, and rancor. Unless you become as little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

May God bless our children and keep them from all harm of mind, body and soul. May Our Blessed Mother ever keep them in her loving embrace.